Latest On Kerry Wood

9:34am: Kerry Wood's "days as a Cub appear all but over," writes Dave Kaplan of CSNChicago.com after talking to a source with knowledge of the reliever's negotiations with the team. Kaplan quotes his source:

"Woody wanted to be here despite the rebuilding process but while the Cubs were saying they wanted him back they were unwilling to pay him the market value for a solid set up man. He has heard from a number of teams that are World Series contenders and they are all willing to pay him a very fair salary to strengthen their bullpen. The Cubs expected him to pitch for another hometown discount. He has already done that for them a couple of times before. There is no reason that he should have to do that again."

Wood told Kaplan last night on WGN Sports Radio that his family plans on staying in the Chicago area for a long time whether or not he finishes his career with the Cubs. Last week Cubs president Theo Epstein said he was "actively involved in negotations" to bring Wood back, noting, "I think this one should work out." If Epstein and Wood fail to find common ground, Kaplan says the Tigers, Phillies, Reds, Angels, and others are interested.

He probably felt that if the Cubs are going to go with a payroll tens of millions of dollars less than last year, they could probably find the extra two million to bump their offer to their team leader up to market value.

Can’t blame him for feeling that way. Can’t blame the Cubs for not feeling that way.

The longtime issue with Cubs management is their desire for “likability” in the face of baseball sense. They finally seem to have a management team bent on building a winner instead of just selling Wrigley Field as a pastoral summer oasis. That said….It’d be nice to see a Kerry Wood wrap it up as a Cub.

Only in Kerry Wood’s case would the Cubs even consider to pay what he’s worth on the open market….given the Cubs rebuilding.

I’d say the ball is likely in Wood’s court. If he wants to play for a ring…he’ll have to take a deal elsewhere.

I’m really not making a case against signing him or not signing him. I’d actually rather see them trade Marmol and bring Kerry back to close if that were the case…get maximium value all the way around.

It’s time for the Cubs to move on. Kerry Wood will always be a part of the Cubs past, but I , for one, would like to forget about the Cubs past. Wood is a great guy, but I will always remember him for injuries and not being a big game pitcher when he was needed most (Game 7 in 2003). Woody is the epitome of an over-hyped player. Everyone wanted him to be great, myself included. The problem is that he never was great. He had one amazing game and was a tale of disappointment for the remainder of his Cubs career.

Yes, those were great performances, but over the course of his career, he never came close to living up to the hype. Fans want to love Kerry Wood for what they wanted him to be, not what he ultimately became, which was a decent pitcher.

Kerry Wood was not a disappointment. He blew out his arm at age 21 and still has had a great, fantastic, just not elite, career. I hate it when people only remember a 13 year career for two games (20 K & game 7 ’03)

If you look at his numbers, you find find nothing to indicate his numbers being great or fantastic outside of his strikeout numbers early in his career. His ERA spent more time on the wrong side of 4 and he never won more than 14 games. I know it is tough to hear for a lot of Cubs fans, but the numbers don’t lie. Kerry Wood was touted as the ace of the future when he came up in 1998. Yes, injuries were the cause of his problems, but to say that he was not a disappointment is inaccurate. He was supposed to be a hall of famer. Ultimately, he turned out to be a servicable middle reliever. If that isn’t disappointment, I don’t know what is…

How about the yankees sign him and then trade him to the Cubs in part of a deal for Garza, and pay some of the salary to offset what the Cubs don’t want to pay and get the prospect haul down a little from the Cubs perspective?

The original idea by William sounded alright but when you came in and said Banuelos, Warren, Bichette Jr, AND 2/3rds of Woods salary I laughed a bit. Outrageous, 3 of the Yankees top 10 prospects for Garza? Really?

If we’re just talking baseball, the Cubs don’t “need” Kerry for 2012. Ticket sales will be fine despite his being a fan favorite and he’s not going to make or break the teams chances of making the playoffs. We’re rebuilding.

Cubs would/should sign him it his price is 50-75% of market, but I don’t blame Kerry if he wants a chance to win a ring and pad his retirement fund. He’s a great guy and one of my favorite cubs, but if he’s changed his tune from “Cubs or retire”, I say we just shake hands, part ways, and welcome him back with open arms as an ambassador for the club when he retires.

Would love to see Wood stick with the team, but if the Cubs aren’t going to make a lot of noise this year, I don’t see why they should pay him the money, especially if he’s going to come back to the team post-retirement. Let him make his money, and maybe get a ring elsewhere. The Cubs need to stop throwing away money just for nostalgia and do what makes good business sense.

This is an utter travesty. They’re not goign to pay big money to ANYONE in free agency, so they have a boatload of extra money. There is absolutely NO reason to not keep Kerry Wood on the roster. They said he wanted, what, $4 million? I’d give him $8 million without even questioning the move, simply on the three facts that no one else is getting big money, it’s for ONE YEAR, and he played for relatively nothing last season.

Not keeping Kerry Wood is an inexcusable joke. People might think I’m overreacting, but when you follow the Sandberg mess with this, there’s kind of a sign that Cubs greats aren’t getting the recognition they deserve.

I suppose that’s possible, but if he WAS dealt, I’d hope it would be in a Maddux-like fashion, where he was sent to a contender to try to get him a ring. In that case, if he’s looking to sign with a contender, that worry shouldn’t be so great.

This is a signing Theo NEEDS to get done to avoid the negative PR. As Cub fans, we all understand that they are tearing down everything and building from scratch. But Kerry is a special case. The loyalty and generosity that he has shown to the Cubs, their fans, and the city of Chicago deserves to be reciprocated by the ball club. To take $1.5 million last year when he could have signed elsewhere for 2 years, $10 million +?! He’s not asking for the moon, simply a market value deal for a reliever of his caliber. The Cubs have plenty of money to bring him back and it’s not like they would be handicapping themselves for the future with a long term commitment. Give the man his $4 million, keep the fans on your side, and let Kerry retire as a Cub.

I am so confused as to why this is getting done..I have said it a million times, 1 yr contracts with unlimited player options. I have a feeling that it is only going to be a few more years before Kerry hangs it up anyway, so why does it matter. The Cubs need to sign the man

Best of luck, Kerry. As a long-time Cubs and Kerry Wood fan, I hope that he does sign with the Phils or some other contender, and wins a ring before he retires. The Cubs aren’t winning with or without him the next couple of years, and he’ll be back with the Cubs after he hangs up his cleats, no matter which team he ends his playing career with. Go chase that dream, man. We’ll be here for you when you’re ready to come back.

Sign him to a nice 2 yr deal – maybe $4MMper with incentives on top. Need to keep him to close on the off chance Marmol is lights out first half of the year ( which would hopefully mean a trade to a contender for some prospects)

The NBA has a +/- stat that tracks the team’s result when a player is on the floor. Leuer is a plus 36 which leads the team. Ilyasova is minus 50. Gooden is minus 48. Only other bigs that are positives are Bogut and Sanders who are both +11.

There’s no reason Leuer shouldn’t be starting ahead of Ilyasova or Gordon.

The team desperately needs another true guard. The roster is full of mediocre forwards, some of whom play out of position at shooting guard. Leuer is a rare bright spot.

It’d be nice to see him stay in Chicago so he can spend more time with his family. Plug in a “future services” clause that kicks in after he retires…give him some security..and we’ll see and hear him on the broadcasts for years to come.

That’s prob already set up, without this contract being involved. I mean you can’t blame him if he signs with another team for a year or two to finish his career. Only unreasonable people would use that as terms to disassociate with a long time player.

I am usually a guy who roots for a guy to stick with one team or to do the hometown discount thing, but I can’t here. I mean we are still talking about crazy money but if I were Wood, I’d take the chance to be with a contender and more $$. You’re not gettin any younger Kerry, go grab some postseason experience!

Do the Cubs need Kerry Wood? No. Is he going to help them compete in 2012? Not really. However, for PR reasons alone, why isn’t this deal done?

Yes, in some ways, he’s a waste of money. The Cubs have too many holes to fill for this year. But on the other hand, the Cubs saved money by not resigning Ramirez or Pena, and they haven’t spent nearly what they’ve saved. A couple extra million to Wood isn’t going to hurt the bottom line that much, and it would make the fans happy.

I understand not wanting to pay Wood if it means another hole goes unfilled, but let’s get real. There is more than enough money available to sign him, and not enough good free agents available to spend it on.

Kerry Wood to the Phillies at near-market value makes no sense. The Phillies are already on the hook for $137.5 million for 16 players not counting Cole Hamels and Hunter Pence who are likely to combine for at least $18-20 million through arbitration or contract extensions. That equals about $157 million for 18 players. They still need 7 players to round out the 25-man. Even if six of those players fetch $3-5 million through arbitration, I can’t see the Phillies being willing to sign Wood for the same amount as the cost of those other six roster players. That would send them into 2012 with an Opening Day payroll in the neighborhood of $165 million. Remember they also have to consider a contract extension for Shane Victorino ($9.5 mil in 2012) moving into 2013. I’d bet Wood lands elsewhere.

If he doesn’t sign w/Cubs, he should come on over to the South Side, him and his family love the city. Wonder if Kenny Williams is one of the teams that has been talking to him. stranger things have happened this year…traded our closer..Santos? Looks like it will be a long season on both sides of town.

That’s a lot of bitterness toward somebody who has done nothing to deserve it. Injuries happen, and they have ALREADY affected his market value — if they hadn’t, he would be a starting pitcher looking for at least double what he’s looking for now. The idea that you would be disgusted that he’s not willing to give you money for back injuries is just silly. Especially when he has already done so. Twice.

If there were a better place to spend the money, I would agree with you. Sure, Rickets can pocket the money that otherwise would have paid for Wood. How does that affect the fan base?

Paying Wood market value does not harm the team, or its ability to compete. There aren’t any bullpen arms out on the market who would be a significant improvement and are any more in the Cubs price range.

If Wood was asking for better than market value, or the Cubs had anywhere else they could spend the money effectively, then he should absolutely be forced to take below market or depart. Fact is, neither is true.

Either pay him, or pocket the profits. Just be prepared for the fan outrage if you choose incorrectly.